10 Tips For Planning An RV Route In A Big Rig

Scubawise · 10-17-2021, 08:18 PM

Hopefully this helps 1 camper

https://rvlife.com/big-rig-rv-route/

Any other tips welcome

DavidEM · 10-17-2021, 09:24 PM

I have done pretty good over the last year just using Google Maps for route planning and execution and Allstays a free tablet app for finding RV sites.

Google Maps is really for autos and doesn't deal with RV weight, height or propane restrictions and sometimes it does route you through no truck zones. But overall it has worked quite well for us. A big plus is that it will reroute you around serious accidents using real time user feedback that would otherwise add significant time to your trip.

This past summer I have put 4,000 miles on my new Axis and only once did Google Maps route me to an undriveable road- the Taconic Parkway in NY State which is auto only. Once I saw the sign to the TP entrance ahead I knew i had been screwed so I turned around and backtracked a few miles to a truck suitable route.

I don't know if no truck restrictions applies to RVs, but I did see delivery trucks as heavy as mine on a no truck route. Also I was once routed on a 5 ton limit road and our Axis weighs about 12,000 lbs- 6 tons. But the route was labeled that way to limit truck traffic and had no low load bridges. I don't know what I would do if I came to a 5 ton limit bridge. Maybe take a deep breath and......

The other thing you have to watch out for is propane restrictions. The Baltimore tunnels prohibit propane so you have to plan to go around them. The Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel allows permanently mounted propane tanks as long as the propane valve is shut. A bit of a PITA as the absorption fridge won't work. But it only takes 10 minutes to cross the tunnels and then you can pull off and turn it back on.

I do like Google Maps almost instant route finding capability as well as figuring the distance. During planning if it takes you through a tunnel or something, you just add an intermediate stop on the bypass and it will route you that way and figure the distance correctly.

But I will try the demo for the RV Trip Wizard by RV Life. It is a bit of a PITA as once you have determined your route using the Wizard which is a web based app, you have to download it to the RV Life App which is a separate program that doesn't rely on a web connection. If they integrated the two like Google Maps I would be more likely to buy it.

David

JamieGeek · 10-17-2021, 09:31 PM

I've also been using Google Maps for quite some time now.

Note that I wouldn't call an Axis/Vegas unit a "big rig" as they are only about 11.5 ft tall and can fit in many places larger coaches can't.

Nonetheless I'll research a route in Google Maps and then "predrive" it using streetview, especially any tricky corners, bridges, etc. Doing this means that by the time we actually go on that drive I know most of it already and find things familiar. I'll even load up the "Wander" app in my Oculus Quest VR setup and look at some of the route.

This method worked great for our 3700 mile trip this past summer. Didn't ever have to stop and turn around because Google sent us somewhere we shouldn't be.

waynetaylor55 · 10-17-2021, 10:02 PM

I wish that Google Maps showed rest stops like the RVLife app does. They are much more convenient to stop at than try to get off the highway and back on.

Scubawise · 10-17-2021, 10:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DavidEM

I have done pretty good over the last year just using Google Maps for route planning and execution and Allstays a free tablet app for finding RV sites.

Google Maps is really for autos and doesn't deal with RV weight, height or propane restrictions and sometimes it does route you through no truck zones. But overall it has worked quite well for us. A big plus is that it will reroute you around serious accidents using real time user feedback that would otherwise add significant time to your trip.

This past summer I have put 4,000 miles on my new Axis and only once did Google Maps route me to an undriveable road- the Taconic Parkway in NY State which is auto only. Once I saw the sign to the TP entrance ahead I knew i had been screwed so I turned around and backtracked a few miles to a truck suitable route.

I don't know if no truck restrictions applies to RVs, but I did see delivery trucks as heavy as mine on a no truck route. Also I was once routed on a 5 ton limit road and our Axis weighs about 12,000 lbs- 6 tons. But the route was labeled that way to limit truck traffic and had no low load bridges. I don't know what I would do if I came to a 5 ton limit bridge. Maybe take a deep breath and......

The other thing you have to watch out for is propane restrictions. The Baltimore tunnels prohibit propane so you have to plan to go around them. The Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel allows permanently mounted propane tanks as long as the propane valve is shut. A bit of a PITA as the absorption fridge won't work. But it only takes 10 minutes to cross the tunnels and then you can pull off and turn it back on.

I do like Google Maps almost instant route finding capability as well as figuring the distance. During planning if it takes you through a tunnel or something, you just add an intermediate stop on the bypass and it will route you that way and figure the distance correctly.

But I will try the demo for the RV Trip Wizard by RV Life. It is a bit of a PITA as once you have determined your route using the Wizard which is a web based app, you have to download it to the RV Life App which is a separate program that doesn't rely on a web connection. If they integrated the two like Google Maps I would be more likely to buy it.

David

01) We only use Google maps ..no buying anything
02) You do not want to even be in a car on the Taconic Parkway in NY State
03) Just turn on the generator and propane off in these cases

Scubawise · 10-17-2021, 10:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by waynetaylor55

I wish that Google Maps showed rest stops like the RVLife app does. They are much more convenient to stop at than try to get off the highway and back on.

You can google rest stops on your roadway

**EA37TS** · 10-17-2021, 10:35 PM

39 feet 11 inches without TOAD. 13 feet 4 inches tall. 29,000 GVWR and 41000 GCWR. Been there, tried that and Google Maps is garbage in my big rig world. I’ve been using RV Trip Wizard since its beta days before RV Life came around. Nothing beats it for trip planning.

chunker21 · 10-22-2021, 12:12 PM

Not mentioned yet is an RV specific GPS. I have the Garmin, 760 I think, and can put in the RV parameters of length, height, width and weight. It will route you around KNOWN road conditions that don't meet the criteria you put in. But it's just a tool along with other mapping, such as google, paper, etc. Regardless of the navigation system a driver still needs to be situationally aware and I feel no sympathy for someone who ends up in the river because google (fill in your favorite nav system) said "TURN NOW.

Chateau_Nomad · 10-22-2021, 12:28 PM

I use Google Maps with Garmin. Remember... Google is an ADVERTISING SALES company. Thus their resistance to letting users manually change the routing, like you can do with most GPS units.

Using these two together gives me a backup and allows finer details about routing. I never use, or trust, one without the other!

tnwave · 10-27-2021, 09:41 PM

I use an array of input. Google maps is a nice start. I also check that route on RVParky because they have overpass heights marked along the route. And especially out west I make use of a new app I purchased called Drive Weather. I can put in a destination and choose my route. It gives me weather along the route along with wind speed, a big deal crossing open lands out west. Also use Trucker Route for pull offs and rest areas. If all else fails I always ask Santa for the Good Sam RV road atlas every year. Never hurts to go old school.

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